Recorder casing with flexible card



Get. 25, 1949. A. E. ROCKWOOD RECORDER CASING WITH FLEXIBLE CARD SLOT CLOSURE Filed June 4, 1948 INVENTOR. AfifazT liijogkwooco Awning v.

Patented Oct. 25, 1949 RECORDER CASING WITH CARD SLOT CLO SURE Albert E. Rockwood, Gardner, Mass, assignor to Simplex Time Recorder 00., Gardner, Mass, at corporationof Massachusetts Application June 4, 1948, Serial No. 31,002 "8Claims. (01. 160-427) This invention relates to "recorders having cas- '-ings which areslotted to permit transverse shifting of the card position therein. It is desirable that all inactive parts of such a card slot be kept securely closed to prevent access to the recording mechanism, but it is not desirable to unduly increase the width of the casing to permit such closure.

It is the general object of my present invention to provide an improved and flexible closure construction by which any "open and inactive parts of -'a card slot will be securely covered and closed at all times, and in which the free end portions of the slot cl osure units hang loosely within the casing.

Preferably I provide a closure unit at each side of the card chute and attached thereto, and I form each closure unit of a plurality of flat links pivotally connected together along their adjacent and transversely extended edges.

My invention further relates to arrangements and combinations of parts which will be hereinafter described and more particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

Preferred forms of the invention are shown in the drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a plan view of the upper end of a card chute having one form of my improved closure construction associated therewith;

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional elevation, taken along the line 2-4 in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an end view, partly in section and looking in the direction of the arrow 3 in Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged view of a portion of a closure unit;

Fig. 5 is an end view of one of the flat closure links;

Fig. 6 is a side elevation showing a modified construction of the closure unit;

Fig. '7 is a plan view of the link construction shown in Fig. 6; and

Fig. 8 is a side elevation of a further modification.

Referring to the drawings, I have shown a portion of a fixed top plate In having an elongated card slot ll therein and forming a portion of the outer casing of a card time recorder. I have also shown side plates l2 and I 4 which form parts of the recorder frame and which support a guide:

rod IS on which a card chute C is mounted for transverse shifting on guide-rolls II. A portion of a record card R is indicated in broken lines, also the usual type wheels W and hammer H. It will be evident from Fig. 2 that the card slot II is much wider than the top of the card chute C,

so that substantial end portions of the slot 1 l are open and inactive in every position of the card chute.

For the purpose of closing these openings, I

provide closure units Beachcompris-inga plurality of elongated flat sheet metal links 20 connected by hinge-pins 2 L. The construction of each link is preferably as shown in Fig. 5, with the long edge portions 22 folded under, and with end tabs '23 folded down to provide increased strength and end wearing surface and to keep links in operative relation.

The hinge-pins 2! have end portions 24 'reverseiy bent to *enter adjacent links. The pins are preferably preformed and are inserted between the links before the edge portions 22 of the links are pressed down to final position.

Each closure unit B has an end member 30 pivoted on the end hinge-pin 2| and secured to an end flange 32 of the chute C by a bolt 33. Rigid sheet metal guide-members 40 and 4| (Figs. 1 and 3) are secured to the frame side plates l2 and I4 and provide U-shaped guide slots to receive the closure units B, which are freely slidable in said guide slots. The guide members 40 and 4! have curved end portions 42 over which the closure units B may slide freely to depending positions, as shown at the right in Fig. 2.

As the card chute C is moved back and forth along -the supporting rod IE, it will be clear that the closure units 3 will similarly slide back and forth along the guide members 40 and 4|, and that the slot II will be securely closed at all times except in that portion of the slot II which is directly over the outwardly flanged upper end of the card chute C.

With this construction, a card chute and card of any desired width may be used, as the closure units B will automatically close any portion of the slot I l which would be otherwise left open in any position of the card chute C.

In the construction shown in Figs. 6 and '7, the closure unit comprises links '50 which are of U- shaped cross section and which have part-length bearing portions 5| and 52 formed in their opposite offset edge portions. Hinge-pins 53 connect the coacting edge portions 5| and 52 to form an assembly unit.

A further modification is shown in Fi 8, in which the links 50 have curved offset lon itudinal edge portions El and 62 which nest in concentric relation to provide integral bearings which do not require hinge-pins. The closure units formed as shown in Figs. 6 and 8 serve the same purpose and possess the advantages previously set forth with respect to the construction shown in Figs. 1 to 5.

Having thus described my invention and the advantages thereof, I do not wish to be limited to the details herein disclosed, otherwise than as set forth in the claims, but what I claim is:

1. In a recorder having a casing with a transverse slot and having a transversely shiftable card chute, that improvement which consists in providing flexible linked closure units connected to said card chute and movable transversely therewith, and guiding means for said closure units adjacent said slot.

2. The combination in a recorder as set forth in claim 1, in which each closure unit comprises a plurality of sheet metal links each extending transversely of the slot, and said links being pivotally connected to each other to form a chain having a flat upper surface.

3. The combination in a recorder as set forth in claim 1, in which each closure unit comprises a plurality of sheet metal links each extending transversely of the slot, and in which hinge pins having U-shaped end portions pivotally connect adj acent links.

4. The combination in a recorder as set forth in claim 1, in which each closure unit comprises a plurality of sheet metal links each extending transversely of the slot and pivoted together, and in which each link comprises a single piece of thin sheet metal having integral folded end and edge portions.

5. In a recorder having a casing with a transverse slot and having a transversely shiftable card chute, that improvement which consists in providing flexible linked closure units connected to said card chute and movable transversely therewith, and guiding means for said closure units adjacent said slot, and the free ends of said closure units hanging loosely within said casing.

6. In a recorder having a casing with a transverse slot and having a transversely shiftable card chute, that improvement which consists in providing flexible linked closure units connected to said chute and movable transversely therewith, and in having elongated fixed guide-bars of U-shaped section to freely receive the edge portions of said closure units.

7. The combination in a recorder as set forth in claim 1, in which each closure unit comprises a plurality of sheet metal links each extending transversely of the slot and of U-shaped cross section with offset edges, each link having partlength bearing portions in each offset edge, and hinge-pins being provided to pivotally connect bearing portions in adjacent offset link edges.

8. The combination in a recorder as set forth in claim 1, in which each closure unit comprises a plurality of sheet metal links each extending transversely of the slot, and said links having curved longitudinal edge portions which coact to form concentric interlocked integral bearings between adjacent links.

ALBERT E. ROCKWOOD.

No references cited. 

